Several PKR grassroots leaders have lodged a police report against DAP’s Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua for allegedly defaming them by calling them gangsters.

“I was chosen by the people, how can I be a gangster?” said K Samynathan outside the Petaling Jaya police district headquarters today.

Samynathan is the deputy chief of Kelana Jaya PKR division and was accompanied by PKR’s Kelana Jaya division secretary S Murali, Selayang division deputy chief G Gunaraj and Kuala Selangor division chief S Manikavasagam.

Murali ( right in photo ), who said he was also offended by Pua calling him a gangster, was the one who lodged the police report.

They were referring to a Facebook post from Pua yesterday, after he visited the new Deepavali bazaar site in Sungai Way.

“I discovered that the traders who have obtained licences to trade from MBPJ were stopped from trading by a group of gangsters led by a Samy and a Murali,” Pua had said in the Facebook post.

Pua had also claimed that the traders were being extorted of money through exorbitant rental fees from “certain parties”.

The Majlis Bandaraya Petaling Jaya fee to obtain a trading license is only RM95, but traders were paying close to RM500 total.

However, Murali said the traders had receipts showing that all RM500 were paid to the city council.

'Pua should lodge report'

When asked if perhaps Pua was referring to the confrontation in Sungai Way on Thursday when he used the word ‘gangster’, the PKR grassroots leaders deflected the question.

Pua had also replied to these accusations of him calling them gangsters in another Facebook post.

“No, I called these thugs who stopped the traders from setting up shop ‘ samseng ’ (gangsters).

“Just because they can no longer collect protection money and profit from the stalls, they are not disrupting the business of genuine traders trying to make a living,” he said.

If Pua was so confident about there being a “crony middleman”, has he lodged a police report about this, Murali asked.

“And if he has, what are the police doing about this? And if he hasn’t, why not?” he questioned.

He has also lodged a police report on Pua’s remarks about the “crony middleman”.

The new Deepavali bazaar site is one street away from the old site and is very near the Sri Sakthi Easwari Temple where the traders could attract more customers, Pua had said.

‘Deepavali bazaar at the same spot for over 10 years’

However, several traders accompanying them at the police station said they have been holding the Deepavali bazaar at the same spot for over 10 years.

“People know where to go to find them,” Murali said.

Asked if the proximity to the temple would actually bring the traders more customers, he said people only go to the temple on Fridays.

The traders should have been notified about the relocation earlier, said Gunaraj.

Instead, Samynathan, who is also the chairperson of the Sungai Way Small Traders Association, said they were only informed about this two weeks ago.

Pua had also explained the relocation as being a result of traffic congestion complaints in the area, but this reason was rejected by the Indian traders.

“The new place will also have bad traffic,” one trader quipped.

Gunaraj added that the traders have agreed to find volunteers to help direct traffic.

While the leaders were talking to reporters, the rest of the people there occasionally said things like “Tumpas DAP” (Down with DAP) and “DAP don’t control Selangor”.

They complained that Pua should stick to talking about national issues like 1MDB.

Samynathan said tomorrow he will lead a protest outside the Sungai Way market on this issue.

On Thursday, a group of DAP elected representatives’ visit to the new Deepavali bazaar site in Sungai Way turned rowdy .

Angry traders had given them a hostile reception and confronted them about the relocation of the bazaar site.

Pua had told Malaysiakini that he will be writing a letter of complaint to the Selangor menteri besar, adding that he is sure PKR does not condone such actions.

When contacted for a response, PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli declined to comment, saying this is a matter "under state jurisdiction".

"It's best that you get Menteri Besar Azmin Ali as Selangor PKR chief to comment, as this is over matters that are under state jurisdiction," he told Malaysiakini in a Whatsapp message.